Chapter YOUNG MONEY Fifteen Years Ago
YOUNG MONEY
Fifteen Years Ago
The second I saw her, I knew she was going to change my life.
I knew she was going to be important. I knew I was going to make her mine no matter what it took.
Solei was fucking beautiful. Smooth caramel skin, deep brown eyes, long lashes, long, blonde hair pulled back in a professional ponytail, and BBW curves that her conservative suit couldn’t hide.
It wasn’t just her looks, though. It was the way she carried herself. The intelligence in her eyes. The way she looked at me was like I was a puzzle she was determined to solve. Most muthafuckas looked at me with fear or greed or both. She looked at me with curiosity.
Back in my cell, my cellmate–some crackhead nigga named Tommy who wouldn’t shut the fuck up–asked me how it went. “Good,” I said, lying on my bunk and staring at the ceiling.
“They gon’ get you out?”
“Yeah.”
“How you know?”
Because I’d seen the way Solei looked at that police report. I’d seen the wheels turning in her head and knew the exact moment she figured out how to beat the case. She was brilliant, and she was going to be mine. “I just know,” I said.
Three days later, Morrison filed a motion to suppress the evidence. A week after that, I was out on bail, and the charges were dismissed due to illegal search and seizure. I ended up sending flowers to the law office.
Solei called me that night. “Montana, you can’t send me flowers at work,” she said, but I could hear the smile in her voice.
“Why not?”
“Because it’s inappropriate. Hello? You’re a client.”
“Former client. The case is closed.”
“Still.”
“You don’t like roses?”
“I… that’s not the point.”
“What’s the point, Solei?”
She was quiet for a minute, then hit me with some bullshit. “The point is that you need to maintain professional boundaries.”
“What if I don’t want to?”
“Montana…”
“Have dinner with me.”
“I can't.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re…” Solei stopped, and I could picture her trying to find the right words. “Because… because it’s complicated.”
“Life’s complicated. That means we can’t eat?”
She laughed, and the sound went straight through me. “You’re persistent.”
“You have no idea.”
She paused for a moment, then uttered, “One dinner.”
“One dinner,” I agreed, already planning the next.
I picked her up the next night in my Honda. It wasn’t extra flashy, but it was freshly detailed and smelled fresh. She came out of her apartment building in a black dress and heels that made my mouth go dry and my dick harder than ever.
“Damn. You look good as fuck,” I said, licking my lips as she slid into the passenger seat, twirling the ends of her long ponytail.
“So do you.”
I wore a custom Tom Ford suit. I wanted her to see I was more than just some corner boy and that I had ambition, that I was going places.
I took her to the best restaurant in the city, overlooking the hills.
It was the kind of spot in East Hollis where you needed reservations weeks in advance.
I’d paid extra to get us a table, but it was worth it just to see her face when we walked in.
“How did you…?”
“I know people,” I lied, pulling out her chair.
We talked for hours about her law school classes and her dreams of becoming a criminal defense attorney.
We talked about her growing up with a single mother who’d worked three jobs to keep her in private school.
I told Solei about growing up in the projects, about watching my mother work herself to death for minimum wage.
I told her about deciding at thirteen that I’d never be poor again.
I didn’t tell her exactly how I made my money but I didn’t need to. She was smart enough to figure it out.
“You’re in a dangerous business,” she said over dessert.
“I’m careful.”
“Careful people don’t end up in jail.”
“That was bad luck. It won’t happen again.”
She studied me, her fork paused halfway to her mouth. “You should get out before it’s too late.”
“I will. Soon as I stack enough bread.”
“How much is enough?”
I shrugged. “Way more than I got now.”
She shook her head, but she was smiling. “You’re going to end up dead or in prison.”
“Not if I have a good lawyer with connections to other good lawyers.”
“I’m not a lawyer yet.”
“You will be. And when you are, you’re gonna be mine.”
“Your lawyer?”
“Just mine.” She blushed and I knew I had her. I drove her home and walked her to her door with every instinct screaming at me to ask her to come upstairs, but I didn’t. I didn’t want to rush shit.
“Thank you for dinner,” Solei said, her hand on her doorknob.
“Thank you for the company.”
“Montana…”
“You keep callin’ me that. It’s Money.”
She looked up at me, and I saw the war in her eyes. The part of her that knew I was dangerous, that knew getting involved with me was a mistake. And the part of her that didn’t care. “This can’t be a thing, Money,” she said softly.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re a criminal and I’m going to be a lawyer. Because it’s unethical and complicated and…”
Fuck it. I kissed her. I couldn’t help it.
I couldn't stand there and listen to her list all the reasons we shouldn’t be together when every cell in my body was screaming that we should.
She froze for half a second, and then she melted into me, her hands fisting in my suit jacket, her mouth opening under mine.
When we finally broke apart, we were both breathing hard.
“That was…” she started.
“Beautiful,” I finished.
She laughed, shaky and breathless. “You’re trouble.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “But I’m your trouble now.”
I kissed her again, softer this time, and then I left before I could do something stupid like beg her to let me stay. I knew, walking back to my car, that I’d just made the best and worst decision of my life. Solei Winters was either going to save me or destroy me. Shit, maybe both.